Internet Anthropologist Think Tank

Saturday, December 20, 2008

White powder envelopes.

FBI DallasContact: Special Agent Mark White(972) 559-5000

Suspicious White Powder Letters Received Around the United States

Since Monday, December 8, letters containing a note and suspicious white powder have been received by the offices of more than 40 governors across the country. Additional letters have been received at several U.S. Embassies overseas, said Robert E. Casey, Jr., Special Agent in Charge, Dallas FBI.

The white powder in each of these letters has been field screened and the tests have met with negative results. The powder has been forwarded to local laboratories and testing to date has been negative for biological agents. The FBI has contacted the governors’ offices and the State Department to be on the lookout for additional letters.

Today, Mr. Casey announced the release of additional information regarding these mailings, to solicit the public’s help to identify the person or persons responsible for these crimes. Photographs of envelopes sent to governors’ offices are below. Although the photographs are of the envelopes sent to the governors of North Carolina and Connecticut, they are similar in content to all letters sent to the governors’ offices and embassies overseas.

These envelopes have the following characteristics:

1.The postmarks reflect mailing on December 4, December 8, or December 11, 2008.

2.The postmark is either “Dallas, Texas” or “North Texas”. The “North Texas” postmark reflects the envelope was processed through the mail facility in Coppell, Texas, a suburb of Dallas.

3.The return addresses used have been one of four addresses for FBI offices in Dallas, San Antonio, Houston, and El Paso, Texas. Names have been redacted from these addresses; the FBI is not disclosing the names at this time.

4.There is a note within the envelope. The content of that note has been the same in each mailing. Although the content of the note is not being disclosed at this time, the meaning of the message is not clear.

Although the substance contained in the mailings is not harmful, the threatening mailings not only constitute a federal crime, but cause alarm to victims and victim institutions and expend costly resources of police, fire, and other emergency responders and state, local, and federal laboratories.

The FBI and United States Postal Inspection Service intend to vigorously investigate these crimes and arrest the person or persons responsible.

The Postal Inspection Service is offering a reward of up to $100,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for these mailings.

Anyone with information on who may be sending these letters is requested to contact the FBI at 1-800-CALL FBI (1-800-225-5324), the Postal Inspection Service at 877-876-2455, or local law enforcement. If you receive a letter, please notify the FBI and your local authorities. Information on how to handle a suspicious package can be found on www.fbi.gov.

**Note: All of the above photographs are of the highest quality available.**

Without going into the details of the formula, the newspaper added that the adamant Taliban chief, contrary to the past, in the plan stressed for timetable for the withdrawal of foreign troops from Afghanistan.

"Peacekeeping troops from Muslim countries should replace the NATO and U.S. troops to ensure a smooth transition until the Afghans can reach a consensus government," Omar insisted in the formula, according to the newspaper.

Another demand made by Mullah Omar is about sharing power with the current Afghan regime as he also demanded the consolidation of the Taliban fighters into the Afghan army and amnesty for them.

Taliban spokespersons were not immediately available for comments.

Omar, who has not been seen in public since being ousting from power by U.S.-led troops in late 2001, had previously conditioned any talks with President Hamid karzai's government with the pullout of more than 70,000-strong international forces from Afghanistan.

With mediation of Saudi Arabian Kingdom, a meeting was held between Taliban and pro-government figures including some Afghan parliamentarians in Riyadh some three months ago.

President Karzai, besides appreciating the talks, called on Saudi Arabian leader to play a role in strengthening security in Afghanistan.

Nevertheless, the fugitive Taliban chief, whose name is among the wanted men by the United States, in the formula warned to intensify attacks on foreign troops if the White House sends additional troops to Afghanistan.

Update: Posted 9 hrs after our post. GRashwan told Al Arabiya that there is an ongoing debate between two forces within the Taliban on whether to give up Al Zawahiri or not. He believes that the outcome depends on who has the final word. if the Taliban nationalists had their way, then Al Zawahiri will be handed over dead or arrested, but if the Taliban Islamists have their way, then the negotiations may fail specifically due to differences on how to deal with al Qaeda.

Another major obstacle for the success of the negotiations is the leader of the Islamic party, Kalb Al dean Hikmatyar, who has alleged his allegiance to both Bin Laden and the Taliban in fighting the occupation. His role in helping the Taliban expand its control in Afghanistan is crucial, which makes him an important part of any future negotiations, according to Rashwan.

President-elect Barack Obama has vowed to use additional force to fight the Taliban in Afghanistan. However, it seems what is needed is less force and more talk. The U.S.’s willingness to talk with the Taliban is essential in isolating them from Al Qaeda.

Recently, the U.S. agreed to consider dropping the name of Mullah Omar from the terror list because of possible talks. On October 31, Press TV cited Patrick S. Moon, U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State in the Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs, saying, "The U.S. intends to remove Mullah Omar from the black list in a bid to provide a suitable seedbed for holding contacts with the Taliban."

There is evidence that these gestures are paying off in the form of more moderate positions within the ranks of the Taliban. In fact, Rashwan believes that the recent bombing of Al Qaeda fighters in the Tribal areas may have been based on information provided by elements within the Taliban as a "good gesture" for what they view as a change in U.S. policesNAM

Friday, December 19, 2008

ME internet down.

A France Telecom report listed 14 countries affected by the current problem. The Maldives are 100 percent down, followed by India, which has 82 percent disruption. Qatar, Djibouti and the United Arab Emirates were the next most widely affected areas with about 70 percent service interrupted. Disruptions for Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Pakistan range from 51 percent to 55 percent.

UPDATE: As reader Julian Borg Barthet notes in the comments section, a fourth undersea cable went out Thursday evening in the same region. The cable, the Seabone, is operated by GO and runs between Malta and Sicily. According to the Times of Malta, GO transferred traffic to a second cable operated by Vodafone. It was the second time in four months that the Seabone cable had failed.

Pocket ultra sound system

Ultrasound System fits into a lab coat pocket.October 12, 2007 - Intended for complementary initial diagnostic care and triage, particularly in cardiology, emergency care, and obstetrics, ACUSON P10(TM) can be used by physicians and medical personnel in environments such as intensive care units, ambulances, and medevac helicopters. Hand held diagnostic ultrasound system weighs 1.6 lb and can detect fluid, determine cardiac activity, pericardial effusion, and abdominal aortic aneurysms.SORRY GOOGLE FORMATING NOT WORKING.

Pocket Ultrasound in Emergency MedicineInstant Insight — StatNot since the introduction of the stethoscope has one tool promised to do more to enhance emergency medical screening and triage decisions. The ACUSON P10™ ultrasound system allows emergency physicians and EMTs to make earlier, faster and more accurate care decisions when time is of the essence. And its ability to easily store and output images, supports the move towards evidence-based decision making.

The ACUSON P10 system is ideal for use with the Focused Assessment by Sonography for Trauma (FAST) protocol to visualize intra-peritoneal fluid or intra-cavity hemorrhage due to blunt trauma or penetrating wounds. Its highly effective for quickly determining cardiac activity, assessing pleural effusions and abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs).Liver/kidney interfaceSmall Form Factor, Big PossibilitiesWith the ACUSON P10 ultrasound system, physicians and clinicians can:Instantly gain insight into critically injured patientsInstantly visualize cardiac activity during resuscitation or ‘crash’ eventsReduce or eliminate unnecessary tests or proceduresImprove bedside monitoringIncrease patient throughputImprove outcomesFeaturing cardiology and abdomen presets and an intuitive PDA-style user interface, the ACUSON P10 system offers instant power-up for high-quality black and white 2D-mode imaging with a 2-4 MHz phased array probe. It includes an SD memory card slot and USB port for simplified communication of patient Cine data, and a dock/recharge station with a spare battery.Corpsman should have these.

Between each vertebra is an intervertebral disk. The disks are filled with a gelatinous substance, called the nucleus pulposus, which provides cushioning to the spinal column. The annulus fibrosus is a fibrocartilaginous ring that surrounds the nucleus pulposus, which keeps the nucleus pulposus intact when forces are applied to the spinal column. The intervertebral disks allow the vertebral column to be flexible and act as shock absorbers during everyday activities, such as walking, running, and jumping.

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Muntader al-Zaidi, Hero

Muntader al-Zaidi I think is a hero because of what his actionssay about what the Arabs have learned.He threw a shoe, Nikita Khrushchev pounded his shoe.Both were expressing a form of Free speech.This may signal that the Arabs have learned to be heardthey don't have to be violent.And he knew he wouldn't be killed.He seemed to trust the American Secret Servicewouldn't kill him for shoe throwing.And he had some confidence that the newIraqi Government would not have himexecuted.

As far as Arab protests go this was right on target.

He was heard world wide, and he injured no one.

This was an extreme form of Free Speech,but they seem to be learning,they can be heard without killing anyone.

And he has demonstrated this for all the world.

The President may have to learn to duck.But this might suggest they are ON THE LEARNING CURVE.His demonstration was a success and a Secret Service nightmare.

But his complaints will be investigated and heard.The Press has already talked to his family and friendsto discover what was behind his actions.

The Sunni-Shi'ite cyberwar started in 2007 when a group of Sunni hackers calling itself "XP Group" threatened to attack all Shi'ite websites on the Internet, and proceeded to hack some 120 Shi'ite sites. At this point, representatives of the targeted sites, headed by Shi'ite sheikh Hassan Al-Saffar, filed a lawsuit in Saudi Arabia against a member of the XP Group named Na'if Al-Ghamdi. According to recent reports on Sunni forums, Al-Ghamdi has been arrested, and has disclosed the names of 17 other hackers operating in Arab countries. [1]

However, XP Group is not the only player in the arena. In May 2008, a group of Iranian hackers called "Ashiyane Digital Security Team" attacked the website of the UAE daily Al-Khaleej.

Sunni Hackers: Electronic Jihad Against the Shi'a Brings One Closer to Allah

In response to this incident, a number of Sunni hacker groups pledged to retaliate against Shi'ite sites. Among them were two groups called Shabab Al-Salafiyin and Al-Ayyoubiyoun. The latter declared on various forums that the war against Shi'ite sites was a form of jihad that brought one closer to Allah. The threats were realized in August 2008, when a group of Egyptian and Saudi hackers attacked the Shi'ite sites Fatimid Egypt, Egyptian Shi'a, and others. This prompted a Shi'ite group, Shabab Al-Shi'a, to threaten further attacks against Sunni sites. [3]

Shi'ite Cleric: The Hackers Will Not Silence the Shi'ite Voice

The cyberwar between the Sunnis and the Shi'ites intensified following statements by prominent Sunni sheikh Yousef Al-Qaradhawi in September 2008 against the spread of the Shi'a in Arab countries and against the Iranian regime, whom he accused of being behind this phenomenon. [4] The Sunni XP Group now hacked some 300 Shi'ite sites, including those of Ayatollah 'Ali Al-Sistani, the leading Shi'ite cleric in Iraq; prominent Saudi sheikh Hassan Al-Saffar; Ayatollah Muhammad 'Ali Taskhiri, secretary-general of the World Assembly for Proximity of Islamic Schools of Thought; and Ayatollah Sheikh Nasser Makarem Shirazi, one of the ayatollahs of Qom, Iran. The targeted sites were defaced with messages in Arabic maligning the Shi'ite faith and Shi'ite leaders. On Al-Sistani's site, the hackers also planted a satirical video deriding the sheikh.

Egyptian Columnist: Hacking Websites Is No Less a Crime than Murder or Arson

Egyptian columnist Diana Muqallid wrote about the cyberwar in the London daily Al-Sharq Al-Awsat: "It seems that the groups inciting sectarian [hatred] in our countries do not only blow up mosques and Shi'ite places of worship, and send out suicide [bombers as part of their] extremist war. The reciprocal killing in Iraq, the clashes in Lebanon, and the suspicion prevailing in many of the countries where Sunnis and Shi'ites live [side by side] are not enough for them - they must also [find other ways to] express their extremist sentiments, which are fueled by radical political views... Battles between Sunni and Shi'ite sites are being waged [on the Internet], with each side virtually killing and harming the other by targeting the websites of religious figures, political leaders, and media outlets such as www.alarabiya.net...

"Some still believe that hacking [sites] on the Internet is not a real or a serious [crime], but things are not so simple... Destroying a website or hacking it in order to keep people from entering it is [no less a crime than] murder, siege and arson. It is an act of negating the other. In our lifetimes, [we have seen] journalists murdered, incarcerated, tortured and exiled. Media outlets have been closed in our region or placed under supervision, [and their premises] have been burned down. Electronic attacks convey the very same sentiment of wanting to negate the other..."

BSU's have evidence of direct contact with in the Pakiterrorist community. And contact for action.

We have evidence of contact in other Arab Countries.

We have deployed 12 more BSU's and a special ops team.

We have extensive surveillance but intermittent traces.We have telescoped triangulation to the extremeand are working all leads it developed.We have ongoing operation teams working this.Some of our previous tracing/tracking ops.